Los Gatos Mayor Joe Pirzynski's State of the Town Address

STATE OF THE TOWN

Feb. 22, 2011

BUILDING COMMUNITY IN DIFFICULT ECONOMIC TIMES

WELCOME AND PURPOSE - LIFE REMAINS GOOD IN LOS GATOS

• As your mayor and on behalf of the Town Council, I would like to reflect on our accomplishments over the past year and discuss the community’s role in our future goals.

• But first, I want to thank my fellow Council Members for their dedication to the Town and their willingness to work together for the well being of our residents and businesses. 

• In mid-January, the Town Council met with our management staff in our annual retreat to review the progress made in fulfilling current strategic plans and project the next two years’ goals.

• This State of the Town address represents the substance of our discussion at this retreat.

• Now into the fourth year of the great recession, we continue to face very real challenges in providing full community services with ever diminishing economic resources.

• Yet, by prudent and strategic planning, we have navigated through this fiscally challenging time and preserved core service levels for the community. Through it all, life has remained good in Los Gatos; we continue to be one of most desirable places to live and visit in the Bay Area.

• Our sense of community is strong; our quality of life is vibrant; our economy is growing; and together we can celebrate the success of the town we call home. 

• Our perseverance and patience have placed us in a position to forge ahead in 2011 to pursue vital community priorities.

COMMUNITY BUILDING THROUGH FISCAL STABILITY

• The Town’s fiscal health remains stable, with key revenue such as sales tax and property tax trending ahead of estimates this fiscal year.

• Our reserves continue strong and intact, given that we have not had to draw them down to cover shortfalls.

• Later in tonight’s meeting, the mid-year budget review will detail the strength of our current financial position as a community.§ Our economic base continues strong this year as a result of community promotion and business attraction and retention in spite of ongoing economic difficulties

• To maintain ongoing fiscal stability, strategic efforts have been made in the area of staffing and salary reductions through vacancy eliminations, staff furloughs, and reductions in overtime.

• Discussions are underway with employee bargaining groups to address benefit cost containment, including a 2-tier pension system.

• Alternative service delivery models to reduce operating expenses have been implemented, such as the partnership with Los Gatos Saratoga Recreation Department to deliver Senior Services.

• Our extraordinary Town management and staff in every department have stepped up to recognize and accommodate our financial needs, working diligently to deliver all services in spite of reduced personnel and funding. 

• On behalf of the Council, I want to extend our thanks to our staff partners for a job very well done in the most trying circumstances we have faced as a government.

COMMUNITY BUILDING THROUGH INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT

• Groundbreaking for the new library occurred in June 2010, and construction is on-time and on-budget at present.  A “topping out” ceremony marking the placement of the last steel beam occurred in December 2010. Projected grand opening is early 2012. 

• The Friends of the Library fundraising campaign is having success in securing major commitments toward furniture, fixtures and equipment.

• This week’s closing of the one bookstore remaining in Town makes our new library all the more significant to our community, particularly our young people.

• The new Los Gatos Creekside Sportspark master plan community input process will be concluding shortly.  At the next public input session, on February 28th, two design options will be presented that are the reflection of the previous discussions held with interested members of our community. 

• The progress of this project is the direct result of the Town’s sale to the County of Town land in Vasona leading to the $6M fund to develop the Sportspark.

• The Town is currently evaluating the condition of streets and sidewalks in the Almond Grove and to formulate strategies to rebuild and replace this infrastructure in the near future.  This is a neighborhood that is in significant need of rehabilitation of its streets and sidewalks. 

• Several construction projects have recently been completed with alternative grant funding such as ARRA and Redevelopment:

University and Blossom Hill Road signalization; Oak Meadow Park ADA pathway; Roberts Road Bridge replacement; Police Operations Building; our new Library; expansion of Parking Lot #6 behind Mountain Charley’s, adding 40 new parking spaces.

• The Town is also moving forward with several projects this year using grant funding through Caltrans: planning and design of Blossom Hill Safe Routes to School; University Avenue and Highway 9 intersection improvements; Wedgewood Road Safe Routes to School; and University Avenue resurfacing (near Shelburne). 

COMMUNITY BUILDING THROUGH CIVIC ENGAGEMENT

• As a Council, we strive to encourage participation and civic engagement to raise awareness of local needs and issues. We continue to see the benefits of making decisions through the collective hands of the community. 

• Our desire for connectivity extends to community gatherings like our 4th of July Celebration, Farmer’s Market, Jazz on the Plazz, Music in the Park, Fiesta d’Arts, Los Gatos Shakespeare Festival and Screen on the Green.  All of these events offer a unique and interactive way for residents, businesses, and community organizations to connect and celebrate community.

• Music in the Park is now coordinated by Los Gatos Art and Music under a new, five year partnership agreement between the Town and this non-profit agency.

• The Arts and Culture Commission is focused on the implementation of a new Arts Plan approved by Council in December.

• We grow future Los Gatos leaders through Leadership Los Gatos, a joint Town and Chamber effort.  Many of this program's graduates have gone on to become Town commissioners and community

volunteers.  One member of our current Town Council began his involvement as a member of Leadership Los Gatos.

• We are committed to cultivating community by developing leadership qualities in our youth.

• The Los Gatos Youth Commission, now in its 7th year of operation, has been very successful, incorporating broader community issues into their work by holding well-attended youth forums and serving as an advisory resource for the Council and Police Department as regards the concerns of our youth.

• Last year, our Youth Commission was recognized at the League of California Cities Annual Convention in San Diego for its innovative Youth Friendly Business program.

• If you have noticed in the last few days the magical sprouting of daffodils throughout the town, it is the work of the Los Gatos Community Foundation's Beautification Committee you are witnessing.

COMMUNITY BUILDING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY

• We continue to enhance our Town website.  The home page is now updated frequently with current events and announcements, and a special new library project feature is available.

• Many permit and payment options are available online to streamline the application process of our Community Development Department.

• With online web streaming of Council and Planning Commission meetings live or archived at our town website, all members of the community are only a click away from knowing how government functions in Los Gatos.

• The Town Council and Planning Commission meetings, telecast live on KCAT15, are mounting a serious challenge to the usual Monday and Wednesday night programming on those other channels.

• With our expanded government lineup, reality TV can't get much better than this.

FOCUSING ON OUR FUTURE

• Our success is not by accident.  It is because of engaged individuals and groups who understand that front porches are crime prevention venues, town beautification begins at the curb of our homes and businesses, and gatherings are celebrations of community.  

• As we look ahead, we are reminded of the importance of maintaining our high level of civic engagement and awareness to hold on to what makes us uniquely Los Gatos – a community that values small town service and character, good financial stewardship, and a vision for the future.

• Over the next year, we will focus our attention on several important issues that require a shared commitment to move us forward.

North 40/Los Gatos Blvd. Development

• With the demise of many auto dealerships on Los Gatos Blvd. and the current active interest in development of the North 40, the opportunities provided us for enhanced community development are immense. However, the consequences of poor planning will have long range impacts on our community character. 

• As a result, the Town has begun significant work with the North 40 developer to prepare for potential development of this last significant parcel of open land within our Town boundaries. 

• A market analysis will identify the North 40 and Los Gatos Boulevard characteristics to determine what services and goods commercial development could support without harming the downtown business district

Complete Streets/Traffic Safety

• We are all aware of the increase in traffic volumes, primarily the result of a recovering job market in the valley.

• The speed of traffic seems to many to be increasing exponentially, putting all of us at risk, particularly those who walk or bike to work or school.

• In response to this issue, the Town will enhance the development a “Complete Streets” program that plans for and executes a street improvement system that provides for a balanced, multimodal transportation network.

• A user friendly environment for pedestrians and bicyclists will be expanded throughout the town as a result.

• Traffic patterns will be monitored and evaluated to inform strategies to improve traffic safety, reduce speeds, and diminish volumes of vehicles trips.

• The goal is the identification of Los Gatos by our community members and our visitors as an environment that expects compliance with speed limits and traffic rules and enforces both.

Los Gatos Prepared - SAFE AT HOME

• As part of our ongoing Los Gatos Prepared program, I am proposing a new facet of emergency preparedness I am calling SAFE AT HOME.

• Community Preparedness is not a one-time effort – it is an ongoing awareness to create a safer, self-sufficient Los Gatos.

• This year our goal is that every resident and businessperson in Los Gatos has the awareness, skills, and resources necessary to be self-sufficient during the first 72-hours of a major disaster. 

• Through our collective voices, we will reach the entire community with the message of community preparedness.

• We must talk to our friends, family, and neighbors about the potential for disaster in Los Gatos and the greater region, and encourage community emergency preparedness training.

• A newly revised Emergency Operations Plan includes extensive additions of evacuation  plans for wildfires, and maps for dam failure. These were added to enhance the response, communication and evacuation route information to those residents in vulnerable areas, particularly Los Gatos hillside areas.

• The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members and emergency management staff have worked to promote the availability of emergency preparedness training in the community. The Police Department has trained approximately 370 residents on CERT and have established 14 specific CERT neighborhoods, 3 of which have defined and organized teams.

• The new SAFE AT HOME program will be an adjunct to Los Gatos Prepared, focusing on each individual family's disaster preparedness in a concrete way.  Each household will be asked to audit its specific emergency supplies and augment as necessary to fulfill the standards for 72 hour self-sufficiency.  This concept will be applied to our business community as well.  All 14 CERT neighborhoods will be brought up to full preparation, and coordination among neighbors will be established.  

General Plan Implementation

• The Town Council adopted the completed 2020 General Plan in November of last year, the blueprint for our next decade as a community. § Our ability to preserve the small-town character of Los Gatos and protect it from increasing development pressures is driven by our General Plan and documents like the Hillside Specific Plan and residential and commercial design guidelines.

• We began the update process almost two years ago, involving the review, identification, and prioritization of current and future community needs.  We particularly emphasized our youth, seniors, the environment, and recreation for special study.

• This process demanded the General Plan Advisory Committee conduct a comprehensive review of the Town’s General Plan.  This committee was comprised of a wide cross section of community members, as well as Council, Planning Commissioners, and staff.

• The General Plan update was an opportunity for the community to collectively co-create the future character of the Town, while preserving the best of its past and present.

• The 2020 General Plan is a testament to the diligence and dedication of all who participated in its creation.  Now begins a process to implement goals and objectives outlined in this new General Plan.

• This will be a major component of our work plan for the next two years.

CLOSING

• The state of our town is strong, vibrant, and successful. In 2011, our commitment is to stay focused on the fundamentals that will ensure our success is sustained for the long-term.

• Each year, Los Gatos grows stronger and smarter – we continue to be successful because we celebrate that which we love – our community. 

• We celebrate this civic spirit through hundreds of large and not-so-large actions we take every day – attending town meetings, opening up a small local business, registering to vote and voting, planting bulbs to beautify downtown, or just saying hello to a neighbor.

• This is what makes us uniquely Los Gatos – the value of our becoming involved and connected with each other.

• There is no limit to what we can accomplish together.

• I hereby issue a call to service to all members of our community as we proceed into the future: commit to one thing that will benefit our town. Please recommit tonight to the volunteer service you already are involved with, or choose some issue that resonates with you and resolve to become involved in that issue. 

• The Town Council stands ready to facilitate this process of engagement.§ Time and again, the residents and businesspersons of Los Gatos have provided the leadership, volunteerism, vision, resources, and commitment to improving our town.

• We are successful because we have great partnerships, a strong sense of community, and a spirit of cooperation and shared responsibilities.

• It is my honor to serve as your Mayor in 2011 and to lead a town with the citizen participation and commitment second to none.

• I look forward to continuing this noble work with my fellow Council Members, our town management and staff, and all members of our community.